Legolas!
by ElfofMirkwood1379
Summary: Oneshot. A typical day with little Legolas, featuring Thranduil and Celeberyn. Lots of father/son and brother fluff. Some tears included, as Legolas learns a little about the mother he never knew and his "Ada's Ada". WARNING: cuteness!


**Hello everyone! **

**Thank you soooo sooo much for all your support on "The Green Leaf in my Silver Forest" You guys are amazing! I never dreamed that it would be so welcome! **

**Well, I'm here with a little Legolas story thing, featuring Thranduil and Celeberyn. **

**Something to note is that in this story Legolas is five, and by this time his mother has already passed on to the Halls of Mandos...sorry I didn't explain too much about that in the story itself...**

**In case you didn't read my first story, Gladhwen is the queen of Mirkwood, and Celeberyn is Legolas' older brother.**

**Anyway, lots of fluff ahead...I hope you like it!**

The great, mighty Elvenking woke up with his long golden hair in a tangled mass.

His five year old son, Legolas, had just learned how to braid, and thought it a good idea to try on his father. He'd made the extra effort to wake up early this morning, thinking he could surprise the king with beautiful braids done in his silky locks.

Thranduil was surprised alright.

And that's how Galion found the king, sitting in bed with a horrified expression on his face as his hair seemed to be arranged in giant knots around his head. Galion bit back a laugh as he slowly backed out of the room, deciding that whatever he needed to tell the king could wait. _Elflings. You'll never be bored._

"Legolas!" Thranduil exclaimed. "What have you done?!"

Legolas smiled proudly. "Ada, I taught myself how to braid! Look! I'nt it pretty?"

He pointed to an especially tangled section of Thranduil's long hair, and as he looked closer, the king could indeed make out the outline of a braid.

"That's wonderful, ion nin! But…must you experiment on Ada?"

"Oh, I did Cel'beryn too!" Legolas giggled, clapping his chubby little hands in excitement. "Now you're matching!"

At that moment, the crown prince of Mirkwood, Celeberyn, entered the King's room with an exasperated expression on his face, still dressed in his nightclothes. "Legolas…!" His light hair resembled a bird's nest, knotted and matted all along its silky length.

"Cel'beryn!" Legolas ran over to his brother and held onto the prince's legs. "See? You both are now prettier then ever!"

Thranduil took one look at his son and burst out laughing in a very un-kingly but fatherly way, doubled over with tears streaming down his face. Seeing his father, Celeberyn also started laughing, which caused Legolas to join in even though he didn't know what was so funny.

The elves that passed by the room heard the merry sounds and smiled, glad that their king was able to start his day on such a happy note.

* * *

Thranduil sighed as he ate his breakfast. It'd taken over an hour to untangle his hair, and the fact that Legolas was pouting the entire time over all his hard work, did not help. But he did finally accomplish his task, and his gold locks were back to their silky straightness. _Thank the Valar for that! __I wish Gladhwen were beside me. _His heart ached for his wife, who had passed into the Halls of Mandos a couple years after Legolas was born. The pain nearly destroyed him, but he was determined to live for Celeberyn and Legolas.

The king was sitting at his long dining table with his sons, trying to peacefully enjoy breakfast before he tackled that huge pile of documents on his desk.

Thranduil looked up from his plate and groaned. "Legolas…!" The elfling had rolled his food into little balls and was launching them with his spoon across the table.

"Take that, you orcs! And that! Ha! That's the power of Mirkwood elves!" Thranduil felt like he should melt from cuteness, or cry in exasperation. _Can we not have one normal meal?_ He looked over at Celeberyn, and immediately and wished he didn't.

The crown prince had also rolled his food into balls, and lined them up on his plate for Legolas' "warriors" to fly over and kill. "Nice shot! Yeah! Try to get the leader, here," he pointed to an extra large ball and Legolas giggled as he launched his food to try and kill the orc.

"Celeberyn!" The king looked at him in horror.

The prince glanced up guiltily and plastered on a grin, immediately taking his hands off of his food. Thranduil sighed, but before he could say anything, he found that Legolas had materialized next to him and was pulling on his sleeve.

The elfling's round face had taken on a sad expression, much to Thranduil's alarm. "What is it, my son?" he asked worriedly.

"I'm sorry, Ada. Don't be upset. I won't play with my food again." He whispered.

This time, Thranduil really did melt. "Oh, Legolas! My son, don't apologize. Ada just wants you to finish all your food so you can grow big and strong. You'll have plenty of time to play later."

Legolas broke into a smile and climbed into his father's lap. "Yeah! I'm going to be even taller and stronger then you, Ada!"

Thranduil laughed. "I'm sure you will!"

Celeberyn grinned. "That means you'll have to catch up to me first, honeg! Are you ready for your morning lessons?"

"NO!" The elfling wrapped his arms around Thranduil tightly. "Handir is boring! I don't like learning about the history of Arda. Do I have to, Ada?"

"Well, yes, Legolas, if you want to be a good prince and a good warrior."

"I do!"

"A prince needs to have a lot of knowledge, so he can then be able to decide what's best for his people. Studying history will make you better as a prince. See, Ada knows all of his Arda history, and it helps me be a good king." Thranduil said, kissing Legolas on the cheek. "Now go, don't keep Handir waiting!"

Legolas slowly climbed out of his father lap. "Alright," he pouted. "But we have to play right after my morning lessons are done!"

"It's a deal!"

The elfling smiled and left with Celeberyn, as the king returned to his room to get to work.

* * *

Legolas swung his legs and doodled on the corner of his paper, completely tuning out Handir, who was trying his best to teach the little prince some history.

The elfling looked out the window of the second-floor room, where he saw his older brother practicing archery in the courtyard. He watched in awe as Celeberyn backflipped and shot three arrows while still in the air, each weapon thudding dead center into the moving targets.

"Go, Cel!" Legolas yelled, waving frantically.

Celeberyn turned, grinning as he saw his little brother leaning out of the window, and gave him a thumbs up.

Legolas wanted to leap down and join Celeberyn, but then watched in confusion as a group of elves approached his brother, and after some talking and laughing, they mounted horses and galloped out through the palace gates. Legolas' eyes widened. His father told him to never leave the palace! What if something bad happened?

"My lord, don't worry," the prince turned to see Handir standing next to him, smiling. "Prince Celeberyn is just joining a hunting party. They'll be back before you know it."

"Oh." Legolas grinned, relieved. "Okay."

Handir tried kept his smile in place as he said, "Now, my lord, can we continue our lesson?"

The elfling groaned. "But, but I want to play! History is boring!"

His teacher sighed, quickly running out of ideas to keep this little ball of energy entertained. "Why don't we take a break for now?"

Before he even finished uttering the last word, Legolas was grinning and sprinting out of the room as if on a special mission.

He was, in fact. He dashed into his father's room and leapt into his lap, startling the king who accidentally drew a giant line through the section of a document he was supposed to agree to.

"Legolas…!" He cried in horror. "What's going on? Why aren't you with Handir?"

"He said I could take a break! Come on, Ada, Come on!"

Thranduil sighed. "I'm sorry, Legolas. Ada's really busy right now. Why don't you go play with your friends? I'm sure Thalion is available."

"Fine…but you have to be free later, okay?"

"Definitely, little green leaf."

* * *

Legolas and his friend Thalion sat on a bench in the royal garden, playing with tiny figurines of Mirkwood warriors. Thalion was the same age as the prince, and the son of Thoronbel, captain of King Thranduil's guard. The two got along really well, always playing "Mirkwood vs. Orcs" in the garden.

"You know, Legolas, today my Nana said that I'm going to grow up even stronger then my Ada!" Thalion said proudly.

"Really? I'm going to be bigger then my Ada too!"

"Did your Nana tell you that? Wait…" Thalion frowned, trying to think. "Your Nana is your Ada's wife. That means, since your Ada is the king, your Nana has to be the queen. But there is no queen. That means you have no nana."

Legolas started feeling strangely defensive, even though he didn't really understand what Thalion was talking about. "Well, I don't need a nana. My Ada's the best Ada in all of Arda!"

Thalion shook his head. "No, everyone needs a nana! One Ada's not enough for an elfling. Not even the king can be a good Ada all by himself!"

"No! My Ada's enough for me!"

"I'm telling you, Legolas, you need a nana! It's not your fault that you don't have one…"

"No!" Legolas jumped up, tears in his eyes. "You're wrong, Thalion!" Turning, he dashed away as fast as his little legs could carry him. What did Thalion mean about needing a nana? His Ada was all that he needed!

The elfling found himself in his father's room again, but this time Thranduil was aware of Legolas' presence and caught his son as he once again flew into the king's lap.

Thranduil laughed. "Legolas, it's only been ten minutes! Why are you back so soon?" his voice faded as he saw the silver tears streaking down his son's face. "Legolas! What's wrong, ion nin?"

Legolas' lip trembled as he buried his face in his father's chest. "Thalion said Ada isn't enough. He said I needed a nana."

The king froze as cold grief began to grip his heart at the thought of his precious Gladhwen. He forced himself to stay in control. "Oh? Why does this make you so upset?"

"Because I don't need a nana! You're perfect to me."

Thranduil wanted to cry as his wife's beautiful face flashed before his eyes. "Legolas…I didn't want you to find out in this way. But let me tell you something. You had a nana, and she was the most wonderful elleth ever. Her hair was light brown, and she had eyes the color of green grass. She was kind and generous, always thinking of others. She was artistic too, although she wasn't the best warrior." Thranduil smiled, as memories of Gladhwen ran through his mind. "Her love for you was deeper then the sea itself, and higher then the stars."

"Ada, that sounds nice and all, but I don't know nana. What does a nana do?" Legolas asked, wiping his nose on his father's robe.

"Oh, Legolas. A nana does everything an Ada can do, but better, and much more."

Legolas shook his head vigorously. "No. I don't need a nana."

Thranduil wrapped his arms around his son tightly. "That's only because you never knew her," he whispered, tears streaming down his face.

"Exactly." Legolas' voice was muffled, and he looked up with pure blue eyes. "All I need is you, Ada. And Cel'beryn too."

The king kissed his son and burst into tears, much to the elfling's horror. "Ada! Ada, don't cry! Is someone being mean to you? I'll make them go away, don't worry!"

"Oh, my dear little leaf." Thranduil whispered brokenly, smiling through his tears. "What would I do without you and Cel?"

* * *

Celeberyn dismounted, still feeling exhilarated after the hunt. He loved the wind on his face and the world whipping by in a blur. He could always forget all his worries while in the forest.

The prince smiled and headed to the palace, thinking that he could encourage Legolas, who should be in his afternoon lessons by now. Before he reached the doors, something streaked towards him from the direction of the kitchen.

Celeberyn's eyes widened in surprise as Legolas hurtled towards him, with a small cake between his teeth, two in his hands, and the royal cook chasing after him, saying, "My prince! Please, that's the fifth one! I need to leave at least a few for tonight!"

Legolas squealed as he saw his brother and ran faster, slamming into Celeberyn's legs and grabbing on tightly. He looked up, grinning around the food in his mouth. Celeberyn reached down and plucked the cake from the elfling's jaws, glaring at him.

"Legolas…! What are you doing? Aren't you supposed to be at your lessons?"

"Sshh!" Legolas whispered loudly. "I snuck out."

At that moment, his afternoon lesson's teacher, Malduin, came hurrying out, quickly locating the elfling and saying, "My lord please, we need to continue the lessons!"

Celeberyn stared at his brother and shook his head, sighing. "Honeg, you can't do this!"

"My lord!" The chef had caught up and bowed to the princes, cheeks flushed.

"Nenuial, I apologize for my brother. He won't steal any more cakes in the future, right?" he emphasized, glaring at the elfling.

"Okay…" Legolas giggled. "I might not do it again."

"You'd better not," Celeberyn warned, scooping his brother up. "Now, back to your lessons!"

"Awww! Can you stay with me? Please?"

"If you want me to, I guess I can."

"Yes yes! Yayyy! Hannon le, Cel!" Legolas squealed, wrapping his arms around the prince's neck.

"But you must promise your hanar to pay attention, alright?"

"I'll try." Suddenly Legolas drew back, wrinkling his nose. "Cel, you stink."

Celeberyn laughed. "That's sweat, my dear little leaf. I just returned from a hunting party."

"But Ada says to not leave the palace. You disobeyed him!"

"Actually, Ada ordered us to leave. I'll explain it to you, _after_ your lessons."

* * *

"Yesterday Ada told me a story, so tonight is your turn!" Legolas clapped excitedly, pulling Celeberyn towards his bed. After a crazy afternoon lesson and lively dinner, Legolas finally grew tired at his bedtime, much to Celeberyn's relief.

The elfling snuggled into his blankets and his brother put out the lights before sitting next to him. "Alright, little leaf. What do you want to hear?"

Legolas thought for a moment, then asked, "Cel'beryn, did Ada have an Ada?"

Taken aback by the question, Celeberyn looked at him in curiosity before replying, "Of course. Everyone has an Ada."

"Oooh! Then tell me about him! Did you know him?"

"I did."

"REALLY? Cool! Where is he? Can I meet him too?"

Celeberyn smiled sadly. "I'm afraid not, honeg. For he's in the Halls of Mandos now."

Legolas frowned. "Ada mentioned about that thing too. What's the Halls of Mandos?"

"That is for another day, when you get a little older."

"Oh. Then tell me about Ada's Ada!" Legolas said excitedly.

Celeberyn snuggled down next to Legolas and stared into the darkness. "Well…his name was Oropher. He was a great king. He had this amazing laugh and his eyes twinkled like stars. He was an amazing warrior – no one who faced him ever stood a chance. Ada always acted like an elfling around him. We had such good times together. He taught me my swordplay and showed me the wonders of Arda."

"He sounds amazing!" Legolas whispered. "But how can someone so powerful go away? What happened?"

"I can't tell you right now. I don't want you to be sad."

A long period of silence followed, and Celeberyn thought his brother was asleep. He smiled and slowly sat up.

"Cel."

The prince sighed. "Legolas, why aren't you asleep yet?"

"Ada's Ada is never coming back?"

"Well…no. But don't worry about that, little leaf." Celeberyn tried to smile, although the loss of Oropher had hit him almost as hard as it did Thranduil. He and his father had sat together in tears that day he returned from the Last Alliance, barely holding onto his own life. The prince brushed his brother's cheek lightly. "Just go to sleep."

"Ada must be really sad!" Legolas threw his blankets aside, jumping out of bed.

"Legolas…! What are you doing?" Celeberyn watched, puzzled, as the elfling ran out of his room.

Legolas' tiny feet made no sound as he flew down the halls, startling all the servants. His blond hair streamed behind him like a river of gold. The little elfling reached his destination and burst inside, finding his father still bent over the documents on his desk. The kind looked up in surprise. "Ion nin! Why aren't you asleep?"

For the second time that day, Legolas leapt into his father's arms with tears in his eyes.

Thranduil's heart clenched. "What is it, green leaf?"

Legolas looked up, his blue eyes shining like pools of crystal water.

"Cel told me about your Ada, Or'pher."

"Oh?" Thranduil really needed to talk to Celeberyn. He did not want to break down in front of his son again. _All these emotions….in one day!_ "What did he say?"

"He said your Ada was strong and a good king. But he also said he's never coming back again…." He wrapped his arms around Thranduil. "Don't be sad, Ada. I'm sure you'll see Or'pher again someday. Me an' Cel will be here for you."

Thranduil was speechless. It was as if _he _were the elfling instead of his son. _Oh, Iluvatar, what did I do to deserve such a beautiful child? _

Celeberyn stood in the doorway, smiling as he watched Legolas. _You are so interesting, honeg. You're going to grow up into an amazing prince, far better then me or Ada ever was…_He returned to the elfling's empty room to prepare to put him back in bed again, all the while imagining the adventures they would have together.

All of Celeberyn's sweet thoughts disappeared the next morning when he woke up realizing that his brother had once again "braided" his hair.

"Legolas…!"

**THE END**

**Honeg - little brother**

**Hanar - brother **

**Soooo I hope you liked it? Let me know what you think!**

**I didn't really know where I was going with this when I was writing...but I hoped it turned out okay! **

**Thank you so so much for reading! More Legolas, Thranduil, and Celeberyn stories to come! (suggestions always welcome!) **


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